


What If?

by moms_spaghetti



Series: Albus and Scorpius [1]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Acceptance, Albus-centric, Gryffindor, James is kind of mean, Pre-Romance, Slytherin, Sorting, Teasing, albus is confused, as in 'see the future', but he's a good brother in the end, like really squint, scorbus if you squint
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-16
Updated: 2016-07-16
Packaged: 2018-07-24 08:03:46
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,833
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7500498
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/moms_spaghetti/pseuds/moms_spaghetti
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Albus couldn't help but wonder, 'what if?'</p>
<p>[i.e., Albus gets Sorted]</p>
            </blockquote>





	What If?

**Author's Note:**

> Hey! So I posted this like a year ago (?) on hpff and decided to post it here too. This is very much an Albus-centric fic, but there's pre-romance Scorbus if you squint. I intend on posting a three-shot (eventually) which takes place a little over a decade after this, and that's where all the non-squinting Scorbus will be :) Enjoy!  
> ~Amanda

Albus Severus Potter stepped onto the Hogwarts Express alone. James was off with Fred and their friend Malcolm, most likely causing trouble further down the train. Rose had found a group of other first year girls and had asked Albus if he wanted to join her, but he politely refused. He didn’t want to have to rely on his family. Albus Severus Potter was going to be his own person, and making his owns friends was the first step. 

 

Wandering down the corridor aimlessly, Albus stumbled upon a rare empty compartment and managed to arrange his rather heavy trunk in the overhead compartment after more than a little struggle. He settled into the seat by the window and recalled what his dad had told him before he left. Two Hogwarts Headmasters. A Slytherin. The bravest man he’d ever met.

 

_ It doesn’t matter if you’re in Slytherin _ , a voice in his head whispered. _ Mum and Dad don’t care what House you’re in, as long as you’re happy. _

 

His dad had said the Sorting Hat would take his words into consideration. He knew that if he asked for Gryffindor instead of Slytherin, it might work. James would stop teasing him about being a snake. Even now, hours after hearing it last, Albus couldn’t drown out his older brother’s mocking voice.  _ Snake _ , James would say.  _ Slytherin’s one and only Potter. A rarity. Make way for the only Potter to EVER be sorted into Slytherin… snak _ e. Albus knew James didn’t mean anything by his words. To his brother, it was just a joke. James was more confident in his brother’s future in Gryffindor than Albus was. Shaking the doubt from his thoughts, he imagined himself in the signature red and gold colors of Gryffindor house. He would be just like his brother, his father, his grandfather…

 

But did he want to be just like his forefathers? Potters had always been in Gryffindor. The Weasleys too. Being both a Weasley and a Potter, Albus knew he shouldn’t doubt his heritage. He would be in Gryffindor. He would follow in his father’s footsteps.

 

_ But what if I am in Slytherin? _

 

That question had been playing in Albus’s mind like a broken record. And while logic kept telling him he was a shoe-in for Gryffindor, Albus couldn’t help but wonder,  _ what if?  _ He’d never admit it to James, but Albus found himself saying those two words more and more often. If he really wanted to be his own person, wouldn’t resisting his natural instincts, whatever those may be, be counterproductive? Shouldn’t he decide based on what he wanted and what he felt, versus the opinions of his family? Before Albus could further explore this thought, a small cough to his left brought him back to reality.

 

“Do you mind if I sit in here?” the intruder muttered. The boy was small and scrawny, much like Albus himself, a shock of white blonde hair covering his scalp haphazardly. 

 

Albus shrugged, choosing to turn back towards the window instead of voicing a response. The boy seemed to take the shrug as a yes, and maneuvered his trunk into the overhead bin across from Albus’s. The blonde plopped into the seat across from Albus when he was done, his body language the definition of indifference. Glancing at the boy out of the corner of his eye, Albus could see a nervous excitement in the boy’s eyes, betraying his calm exterior. The intruder seemed familiar to Albus, but for the life of him, he couldn’t seem to place the boy sitting across from him. 

 

Albus didn’t realize he had started to stare until the boy coughed awkwardly again. Blushing slightly, Albus stuck his hand out towards the boy. 

 

“I’m Albus, but you can call me Al.”

 

The boy hesitantly shook Albus’s outstretched hand, relaxing slightly at the raven-haired boy’s touch. 

 

“I’m Scorpius. And before you start teasing me, I know it’s weird. My family is cruel when it comes to naming their offspring,” Scorpius babbled through what seemed like a rehearsed speech.

 

Albus chuckled. “I’m not gonna tease you for having an odd name. Besides, it’s nothing compared to mine. What kind of parent names their kid Albus Severus anyway?” Albus joked, finding it easy to talk to Scorpius. The other boy grinned.

 

“I don’t know, Scorpius Hyperion is pretty bad,” the blonde quipped, and the two boys shared a laugh. They continued talking, only realizing how much time had gone by when a passing student told them they should change into their robes, as the school was only twenty minutes away. 

 

Talking to Scorpius had made Albus forget about the Sorting. Strangely enough, their House preference hadn’t come up once during their conversation. Albus already thought of Scorpius as his friend, so he resolved to stay friends with him even if he ended up in a different House. 

 

_ Hopefully he won’t hate me if I’m in Slytherin. _

 

Just then, the train pulled into the Hogsmeade Station, and the proximity to the school caused all of Albus’s previously forgotten fears and doubts to come bubbling to the surface.

 

Scorpius, noticing Albus’s stiff composure, nudged his friend gently. “You alright, Al?” The boy in question simply nodded, not wanting to appear weak in front of his new friend. The blonde didn’t ask again, but the concerned glint in his eyes didn’t leave until after they had sailed across the Black Lake and were being led into the Entrance Hall by Hogwarts gamekeeper, Care of Magical Creatures professor, and the Potter-Weasley family’s good friend, Rubeus Hagrid. 

 

Albus was so absorbed in his internal struggle that he barely acknowledged Scorpius pointing excitedly at the starry ceiling, or the other first years chattering about floating candles. It was only when he caught the eye his godfather Neville Longbottom, the Herbology professor and Head of Gryffindor House, that he came out of his head and took in his surroundings.

 

Neville winked at Albus from his place by the Sorting Hat, a large scroll in the professor’s hands. Albus gulped nervously, ignoring Scorpius’s concerned glances and barely acknowledging Rose’s presence on his other side. He didn’t know when she had found her place beside him, but it was of little comfort to him. He began chanting in his mind,  _ what if? What if I choose Gryffindor? What if I choose Slytherin?  _

 

Neville’s clear voice went through the first years, and Albus was snapped out of his stupor when he heard “MALFOY, SCORPIUS”. So that’s where he recognized his friend from. Scorpius was a Malfoy. While Albus was a little shocked, as it had never occurred to him during the hours-long train ride to inquire over Scorpius’s surname, his opinion of his friend didn’t change upon learning who his parents were. Nor did it change when the Hat yelled “SLYTHERIN!” after two seconds on the blonde boy’s head. 

 

Scorpius sent a small smile Albus’s way, indicating there would be no hard feelings if Albus ended up in a different House and their friendship ended after less than a day, and walked humbly over to the cheering table full of green and silver adorned students. Albus grinned back, trying not to let on how nervous he was.  _ Slytherin or Gryffindor? Slytherin or Gryffindor?  _ He didn’t know anymore.

 

A few more people were sorted, and Albus nearly jumped when his godfather yelled out “POTTER, ALBUS”. Heads turned to catch a glimpse of the second Potter son, and whispers followed Albus as he made his way towards the old hat. 

 

“He looks just like his dad, don’t you think?”

 

“I wonder if he’ll be as much of a troublemaker as his brother.”

 

“I can’t see him, he’s so short!”

 

“Move over, Angie, I want to see him!”

 

He tried his best to ignore the murmurs. He caught sight of Scorpus from the corner of his eye, the pale boy’s face wearing more shock than the rest of the student body. Tearing his gaze away, Albus looked toward the stool looming in front of him. Neville lifted the hat onto Albus’s head as he sat and waited. A few seconds had passed when a voice suddenly sounded in his head. Albus didn’t bat an eye.

 

_ Another Potter, eh? You look like your father, but are you as similar in personality as you are in looks?  _ Albus remained quiet, too nervous to voice his thoughts. 

 

_ You’re a quiet one, aren’t you?  _

 

More silence. 

 

_ Well, that makes this easier. I’m guessing you’ll be wanting Gryffindor like your brother and father... _

 

Albus stiffened. 

 

_ No? Does bravery and glory not appeal to you, boy?  _

 

Albus went to disagree with the hat, to say that he wanted to be like his father, but something stopped him. He couldn’t name it, but it was there, and it was making his head reel. 

 

_ Or does your fate belong someplace else...Slytherin, perhaps? _

 

Albus’s head was spinning. His brother’s taunting voice yelling ‘ _ snake!’ _ echoed within his mind. His dad’s words, ‘ _ Bravest man I’ve ever met…a Slytherin _ ’, on repeat. Scorpius’s sad smile, accepting that their friendship was over, a constant image in his mind.

 

He didn’t want to be like James or his Dad. He wanted to be Albus.

 

_ Made up your mind, Potter?  _ The Sorting Hat’s voice asked. 

 

_ Yes, _ Albus thought.

 

_ Okay then, here we go… _

 

Albus took a deep breath.

 

“SLYTHERIN!”

 

He breathed out, equally shocked and relieved.  _ Slytherin. _

 

The room was silent. Albus didn’t care. He removed the old hat from his head, handed it to Neville, and calmly, with as much dignity and indifference as he could muster, walked over to the Slytherin table.

 

No one cheered. No one moved. Albus sat beside Scorpius, his blonde friend’s mouth hanging slightly ajar, and Albus pretended the hundreds of eyes on him didn’t bother him in the slightest.

 

James was the first one to act. He stood up, and for the briefest of seconds, Albus thought his brother was going to yell at him from across the Great Hall. The middle Potter ducked his head for second, but immediately it sprang back up when he heard a single pair of hands clapping.

 

Albus locked eyes with his older brother. James, who had teased and mocked his younger brother endlessly all summer, clapped for his brother. Soon enough, the rest of the school joined in, and the ceremony continued as if nothing odd had happened. Scorpius clapped Albus on the back, a secret smile on his lips as he animately watched the rest of the Sorting, and it stayed on the former Death Eater’s son’s face throughout the feast. 

 

Albus, aside from the quick grin he threw at his new friend, kept his eyes on the Gryffindor table. James stared back, a sad smile gracing his features.

 

James tipped his goblet towards Albus, and the younger brother did the same.

 

_ To you _ , James mouthed,  _ the bravest man I’ll ever know _ .

 

Albus’s smile widened and his disbelief turned into the lightest feeling.  _ This must be happiness _ , the raven-haired boy thought.

  
_ I’m home. _

**Author's Note:**

> Hope you guys liked it! This is the first fic I ever wrote (that I was comfortable posting), maybe two years ago? Anyways, thank for reading! Feel free to comment, they warm my heart :)


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